EXTREME CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING TV

September 27, 1996

Joel Gertner spoke in the ring as the show began. He introduced, “direct from Havana”, Julio Caesar Valentino Alfonso, who was making his managerial debut with Bad Crew.

1. Sandman vs Devon Storm (w/Bad Crew & Alfonso)

Storm hit a somersault plancha before the bell and caned Sandman. Bad Crew also attacked Sandman at ringside. They held Sandman and Storm gave him a baseball slide kick. Storm also jumped off the apron with a clothesline. He hit Sandman with a chair and Crew continued to interfere as well. Storm jumped off the top rope but Sandman caned him. Sandman also caned both members of Bad Crew and the ref. Storm and Crew fought back and triple teamed Sandman. Storm moonsaulted Sandman and Alfonso tried to count a pin but Sandman caned him. Sandman DDTd Storm and pinned him in 3:07. He then DDTd and pinned each member of Bad Crew. Just a short match intended to get across Sandman’s anger over recent events and establish him as a threat going into Ultimate Jeopardy (a match that I have reviewed). *

They replayed Shane Douglas attacking Lance Wright on last week’s show as well as clips of the Douglas-Pitbulls feud.

2. J.T. Smith & Little Guido (w/Sal Bellomo) vs Gangstas (New Jack & Mustafa)

The Gangstas hit the ring with their usual intensity. Mustafa broke a picture frame over Guido and Jack hit Smith with all kinds of weapons. Mustafa booted Guido and Jack hit Smith with a crutch. Bellomo tried to intervene but Jack attacked him as well. Mustafa powerslammed Guido. Jack threw Guido out of the ring as the Gangstas continued to dominate the match. Mustafa powerslammed Bellomo and Jack came off the top rope with a chairshot for the pin at 2:10. Entertaining for what it was. *

3. Sabu & Rob Van Dam vs Dan Kroffat & Doug Furnas

Furnas clotheslined Van Dam after they got across the tension between them stemming from their previous singles match. Van Dam landed some shots but Furnas scored with one of the best standing dropkicks I’ve seen. Furnas knocked Van Dam over the top rope with a tackle. Van Dam tagged Sabu in a way that not only showed his unwillingness to fight Furnas, but also to show his dissention with Sabu. Kroffat attempted a backdrop but Sabu landed on his feet and dropkicked Kroffat. Sabu knocked Kroffat out of the ring with a spinning kick and knocked him over the barricade into the front row with a baseball slide kick. Sabu launched off a chair onto Kroffat in the crowd for a pop. Sabu whipped Kroffat into the corner but missed a clothesline and Kroffat gave him a released German suplex. Furnas dominated Sabu and applied a Boston crab but Sabu quickly reached the ropes. Furnas missed a corner splash and Sabu clotheslined him. Sabu went to tag Van Dam and Van Dam lightly kicked his hand. Van Dam gave Furnas a couple kicks including an enzuguiri. He also gave Furnas a sharp spinning savate kick for a near fall. Furnas won an exchange against Van Dam with a spinebuster. Kroffat superkicked Van Dam but Van Dam recovered and tagged Sabu. Kroffat did a roll into a leglock on Sabu. Sabu fought back and legdropped Furnas. Sabu launched off a chair and hit a top rope elbow on Furnas. Sabu gave Furnas an Arabian facebuster for a near fall. Furnas fought back with a short clothesline. Sabu reached out to tag Van Dam but Van Dam didn’t extend his hand. Kroffat dominated Sabu in heelish fashion and gained a near fall. Van Dan tagged in but Kroffat got the better of him with a mule kick, chop, monkey flip and a barrage of punches. Van Dam tried to fight back, Furnas intervened and Sabu did as well. Sabu dropkicked Kroffat out of the ring and also dropkicked Furnas out of the ring. Sabu gave Van Dam a left handed handshake, then whipped him over the top rope and Van Dam hit a somersault plancha on both opponents, nearly wrecking himself on the barricade in the process in a neat spot. Sabu then launched off a chair with a springboard plancha onto both opponents, but himself crashed ribs first onto the barricade. Back in the ring Kroffat gave Sabu a snap suplex for a near fall and another snap suplex for another near fall. Kroffat then applied a double chicken wing with Sabu facing the mat, then flipped over Sabu and bridged while maintaining the hold. Furnas powerslammed Sabu for a near fall and legdropped him for another near fall. Furnas attempted a tiger driver but Sabu backdropped him. Furnas recovered and gave Sabu a belly to belly suplex. Kroffat went to the top rope but Sabu caught him and gave him a top rope huracanrana for a near fall. Kroffat recovered and gave Sabu a cobra clutch suplex for a pop and a near fall. After a commercial, Van Dam tagged in and attacked Furnas. Van Dam spin kicked Furnas and also gave Kroffat a spin kick in the corner when he tried to intervene. Van Dam gave Furnas a top rope dropkick and a standing moonsault for a near fall. Van Dam placed Furnas’s neck over the apron and gave him a legdrop. Van Dam placed Furnas on a table propped between the apron and the barricade. Sabu went to launch off a chair but slipped and crotched himself on the top rope. Van Dam then hit a top rope somersault senton onto Furnas through the table. Sabu gained a near fall on Furnas. Furnas whipped Van Dam into the corner but ran into a boot. Van Dam teased a moonsault, Furnas dropped but Van Dam faked and instead hit a split legged moonsault for a near fall. Van Dam gave Furnas a pedigree but postured too long to the fans and Furnas completely flipped him over with a released German suplex for a near fall. Sabu intervened but Kroffat hit him with a chair. Kroffat hit Van Dam with a chair and gave him a tiger driver onto the chair for a near fall. Sabu hit Furnas with a chair and hit a triple jump moonsault on Kroffat for a near fall. Furnas gave Sabu a sharp frnaknesteiner for a near fall as Kroffat hit Van Dam with a chair. Kroffat gave Sabu a back superplex that almost landed like an inverted brainbuster for a near fall as Styles called the move an inverted Tazplex saying he had hooked up with Furnas and Kroffat due to his hatred of Sabu. Sabu rolled up Kroffat for a near fall but Kroffat then applied a sleeper. Furnas lifted Sabu and Kroffat gave him the doomsday device for a near fall. Sabu hit Kroffat with a chair at ringside as Van Dam spin kicked Furnas in the ring. Van Dam missed a tope on Furnas as Sabu hit Kroffat with a chair. Furnas attacked Sabu but Sabu landed a couple chairshots at ringside. Kroffat applied a leglock on Van Dam but Sabu gave Kroffat an Arabian facebuster to break the hold and for a near fall. Kroffat spin kicked Sabu and Furnas gained a near fall. Kroffat and Van Dam clotheslined each other. Sabu bulldogged Furnas onto a chair and hit a springboard elbow for a near fall. Sabu armtossed Kroffat for a near fall. Van Dam gave Furnas a corkscrew legdrop for a near fall and Kroffat gave Sabu a tiger driver for another near fall. Van Dam hit both opponents with a chair. Van Dam legdropped Furnas with a chair on his back but Kroffat superkicked Sabu for a near fall. Van Dam placed a chair on Furnas and hit a split legged moonsault, then Sabu gained a near fall on Furnas. Sabu gained a near fall on Kroffat and Van Dam DDTd Furnas for a near fall. Kroffat applied a sleeper on Sabu as Van Dam hit a top rope splash on Furnas for a near fall. Van Dam attacked Kroffat but Furnas then gave him a released German suplex for a near fall. Kroffat gave Sabu an inverted superplex for a near fall but time ran out, supposedly at the 30:00 mark. A total of 25:47 aired, and the first of 2 breaks probably cut a minute or two. Sabu and Van Dam asked for 5 more minutes and Kroffat and Furnas appeared to agree, but then walked out. In some ways I liked this match, and in some ways I thought it fell flat. Kroffat and Furnas brought smoother pacing to this match than typical Sabu & Van Dam matches from this time. All four worked as hard as they usually did, and the match never really dragged. But, the match never seemed to sustain momentum for extended periods of time either. At times it was a bit disjointed, and some of the transitions from Sabu and Van Dam were even weaker then usual for then in late-96. That said, this was overall a good match, generally enjoyable, but best shown in edited form since there were lots of good moves. ***

As Joey Styles started to hype Sabu, Taz and Bill Alfonso interrupted. Taz then went on a rant saying that Sabu fears him as the show ended.

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